Australian High Court to Hear on Same-Sex Marriage Before Postal Plebiscite

An advert was circulated inciting people to vote against legalizing same-sex marriage in Australia. This sparked a rally among the same-sex advocates. Following the advert, the same-sex marriage advocates have shunned the video as misleading. They said, “Australians support equality.”

However, the Leader of the Opposition Bill said the advert was offensive to the Australian LGBT communities.

Australia’s apex court will now be hearing the legal challenges against a national vote on same-sex marriage. As the nation witnessed intense campaigning for the cause, the government plans to conduct a postal survey to determine the number of supporters for same-sex marriage.

The government also plans to set aside AUD $122 million to hold a non-binding postal plebiscite from next week to determine the number of people in favor of same-sex marriage. The authorities will withdraw the national survey if legal challenges are successful.

Commonwealth Solicitor-General Stephen Donaghue told the court, “The Government had appropriated the money lawfully and there was nothing untoward in the policy.”

The High Court of Australia will conduct proceedings for two separate petitions by same-sex marriage advocates on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Since the government will mail out the surveys from September 12, the court is expected to pass a verdict on the matter soon.

Anna Brown, a lawyer involved said that it was a terrible idea to allow public vote to decide the group’s rights.

The authorities said, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is entitled to conduct the public vote. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s government is positive that the court will tilt in their favor.

“We are confident the challenge to the postal vote on marriage will not be successful. So, we are very confident the postal vote will go ahead,” Mr. Turnbull stated on Thursday.

He pledged that the majority moving in favor of same-sex marriage will prompt the Court to make amendments in Australia’s Marriage Act. The Members of Parliament would however be refrained from voting in line with the public.

Bhawna Kohli is an acclaimed Research Manager - Cross Verticals and author. Bhawna holds a masters with a rich background in international politics, media, and marketing. Popular as a seasoned communicator and writer, she has published several data-oriented articles for both online and print media.